Coping with an Asthmatic Child

Eils Hewitt: Having an asthmatic child can be really scary for moms and dads, Su Laurent the baby channels medical advisor is here as a mom and has a little boy with asthma. She is here today with her little son Eddy to talk about her worries how she copes and more you can to do to put your mind at rest. Thanks for coming in nice se you again. Su Laurent: Hi Eils Hewitt: Nice to meet you Eddy. You are like, like a teacher in a school isn’t it. Now what is what extra problems are brought about with having an asthmatic child for parents? Su Laurent: I think to think about asthma is the unpredictability of vital and I think the particularly when you are a doctor I been running an asthma clinic for years and years and you don’t really understand what that’s all about until you actually have a child with asthma. And it’s the fact that most of the time they will be absolutely fine, no problems at all, and then suddenly they will get a cold and often a trick of factor, and then they will get very wheezing, and then you’ll lands up having a horrible night with lots of coughing and lots of wheezing. Eils Hewitt: So what kind of, what’s the best way of dealing with those worries and face? Su Laurent: Well I think the first thing, I find about the cause of child who wheezes is to take that child along to see the GP and many GP is actually have an asthma nurse who runs all the asthma follow up in that practice, very, very well. And take your child along, are you showing us that you are wheezing, take your child along and really you have to assess whether your child has got mild asthma moderate asthma or severe asthma. Eddy, Eddy can we do you want to be ask you something Eddy shall we asking you something about your wheezing. Eils Hewitt: Eddy what you do then when you feel a bit wheezing. Su Laurent: What would you do when you feel wheezing Eddy? Eils Hewitt: How do you make yourself feel better? Eddy: I don’t know Su Laurent: Shall we show in house how you use your inhaler; shall we show how you use this? Eils Hewitt: How do this work? Su Laurent: How does that work, you want to show her? Eils Hewitt: This is such a big inhaler isn’t it? Eddy: You do this is time. Su Laurent: Sure I will do this time, so we take this out that way this is the commonest way of treating a childs asthma, and what it is, is an inhaler that you can use to treat a childs asthma when they are actually unwell, so if they are wheezy or if they are if they are coughing a lot he use this is the wrong color use a blue one, I am just taking is a blue one we caller relieve, and what do you do is you press it in here and top reason and out and then you can here that little thing clicking back within forwards and that shows that the inhaler is actually going in to their lungs and they give a couple of puffs of that and then you wait and see what happens, and very often the wheezing was settle down coughing was settle down every one be relived and then your child can go back to sleep if it’s the middle of the nights. Thank you very Eddy that’s a very good demonstration. Eils Hewitt: Thanks you very good demonstration. Su Laurent: Thank you very much. Eils Hewitt: Parents would be worried for you know the attack when the inhaler isn’t sufficient you know so what are, what would be their kind of biggest worry and then having okay with that. Su Laurent: If the inhaler isn’t sufficient, usually you use, you use up to 10 puffs to the inhaler and watch and wait if after 10 puffs, and waiting about 10 minutes and so childs still very wheezy then you what you want to take them to see a doctor that might be during the day that might be your GP or night it might be going to direct to the causality department or calling as emergency GP. If the inhaler you convention inhaler that is not working they’ll very often need and may be nebulize given with oxygen and that will also provide immediate relief. The other thing and if your inhaler is working very well but only thing is that more often then every 4 hours also then again the asthmas not well enough controlled and you may need something else like some steroids. Eils Hewitt: Now the steroids that i mean the steroids affect the growth rates of children always I meant though. Su Laurent: That’s a very good question. If you get steroids by mouth to a child with asthma which she will gives easily once a today for 3 days or 5 or even 7 days. That one of the fact the growth rate of your child at all, it not going to be of any relevant evidence. It’s along term problems. Eddy, Eddy Eils Hewitt: Well Eddy is quiet tall for a 4 year old. Su Laurent: He is very tall for 4 year old. He is very active fro 4 years old. I mean he has is known any where held back by having asthma, because the other thing that we do with Eddy is we give him preventer everyday. Now if a child needs to be on a regular on an inhaler because they have significant symptoms. What you do is you get them preventer everyday just to stop them from the coming wheezing and is fact the only strength about Eddy is a consulting hardly ever wheezing and Eddy, how is your wheezy, how is your wheezy. Eddy: Put in inhaler for me. Su Laurent: How often do you think you wheeze every night or just sometimes? Eddy: Sometimes. Su Laurent: And when you run sometimes you wheezy when you run? Eddy: No, no. Su Laurent: And usually that just settles down, because we can from prevent them regularly. Eils Hewitt: Right that’s that helps. So Eddy do you do any kind of sports? You play foot ball or you do lots of running. Su Laurent: Eddy, Eddy did you do what some sports you do? What do you do? Did you do swimming, did you do skating, trampolining, did you love’s a lots of running around. Eddy: Yeah. Su Laurent: You do tennis. Eddy: Yes. Su Laurent: He does all this things. Eils Hewitt: So asthma doesn’t stop to do lots of sports. Su Laurent: He doesn’t and he never reasons any of those. Eddy: I do wheezing well on tennis. Su Laurent: Will you plat tennis some times dear when you are really running a lot. Eddy: Some times I get hold on were get wheeze and hold. Su Laurent: Yeah that’s right. Eils Hewitt: So it’s actually something which you would just grow till in the main. Su Laurent: That’s a very good question, lots of children if you have asthma it means You got the gene for asthmas, and it means you can be effected in anytime of Your life but the, the treat is a trick of matches so often it’s cold for just more Children and I so very often they will out grow it in a small Childs they won’t be Getting lots cold and they would be having asthma attacks triggers, but you may find People in that’s a lot who having that asthma for years who will redecorate the house Or move into a new dusty place and suddenly become very, very wheezy. So that is Important to recognize the way you might grow after as a child you must never Ever smoke. See that’s probably the take home message really from today. Eils Hewitt: Right. Su Laurent: And tried to make sure that all the asthmatic children I say in my clinic one of the things I try to drum in to them is never ever, ever smoke. Eils Hewitt : Oh well that’s really interesting now, just thinking of viewers watching the program you know that are pregnant and they are worried about you know if the childs going to you know get asthma, is here what’s the best way to kind of cope with those face and worries, I mean it is -- it’s a genetic and I like they have the asthma. Su Laurent: Well, I would say that if you’ve got in your family if you got asthma high fever asthma those are the sorts of things that mainly your child is slightly more likely than general population to have asthma. But by know means is going to find I mean most time, and most children if I they have asthma they will have it very mildly, something like15 % of all school children if tested sort of some degree of asthma. Which is quite common is in it. Eils Hewitt: So actually there is nothing you can do in your pregnancy to ignore the chances if a child to get this asthma. Su Laurent: There is nothing you can do to just translate the asthma and actually I think the most important thing is that every child to be just treat as a normal child and if you are worried just go along and see the GP. Eils Hewitt: So what would be the best advice for any one that’s got a Childs with asthma and they just concern because you know they are having a lot of kind of asthma attacks and they are not sure whether it’s really under control. Su Laurent: I think they need to go we all and really understand what asthma is all about understand all the sorts of treatment that preventers the relievers, and make sure they confident about the doctor that they are saying and if they don’t feel comfortable with doctors are saying they can always ask for a referral to a specialist. I think that is very important. Eils Hewitt: And what at age do the symptoms usually start. Su Laurent: And very often if you look back you will see that as a baby a child wont be quite easy and ant time they had a cold full of had wheeze but sun goes away. But we don’t easily diagnose it until about 18 months, the really but that is the many children when they get cold, will become wheezing, but as they go beyond the 18 months its clear it’s not asthma because they don’t wheeze beyond the 18 moths. If they carry on wheezing beyond 18 months then be it is asthmatic stage. Eils Hewitt: Right, and of course yea kind of and say its very hard to check with the little babies have cold, especially the winter, early at the week Su Laurent: Exactly, exactly. Eils Hewitt: Well Eddy thank you so much for coming in with your mom, it’s been lovely to meet you, and I am really pray for you, being such an active sporty life and that you got your asthma want to control. Thank you very much. Su Laurent: Thanks you very much. You say thank you too. Eddy: Thank you.